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Match Summary

• Joao Pedro hands Chelsea the lead in the first half.
• The Italian outfit the stronger side after the interval and draw level through the striker.
• Charles de Ketelaere grabs a last-gasp decisive goal for the home side.
• The defeat means Chelsea fall to 11th in the group stage of the Champions League.
• The top eight qualify automatically for the knockouts.

The London club's chances of qualifying automatically for the Champions League knockout stages were dealt a blow as Atalanta overturned a deficit to claim victory in their home stadium.

Both sides went into this match with the same records in the league phase of this year's tournament, having won, tied one, and lost to be on ten points.

For large parts there was little to choose between them in this contest too, although Chelsea got their noses in front in the opening 45 minutes when the Brazilian converted the captain's delivery.

But The Serie A side consistently appeared a threat going on the attack, with former Charlton and Everton attacker Ademola Lookman problems for the backline.

James fired wide in the second half but the home team raised the pressure and justly equalised when former West Ham United striker nodded home a centering pass.

The winger drove a strong effort straight at the goalkeeper but they secured the decisive strike in the closing stages when the Chelsea defence backed off Charles de Ketelaere, who seized the opportunity with a powerful shot.

Chelsea attempted to rescue a point late on but a excellent save by the Atalanta goalkeeper denied Joao Pedro.

The outcome means Chelsea drop out of the automatic qualification places—the spots that qualify automatically for the next round—to 11th with two league phase games remaining.

Atalanta, in contrast, jump up to third place, three points clear of the Londoners.

Blues Breakdown - Worrying Sequence Continues

This was a deeply disappointing outcome for Chelsea as even a point was keeping them well placed to achieve the top eight finish they require to avoid the lottery of the play-offs.

But they let their concentration slip in defence with seven minutes left on the clock and Atalanta capitalised completely.

The Italians are in rich vein of form at the moment so this was always going to be a tough test for the Blues, but they will be frustrated to be leaving with no points after taking the early advantage.

But the broader context is that this extends Chelsea's concerning sequence of form in all competitions.

Since beating Barcelona 3-0 at the end of November they are now without a win in their last four outings.

Too Many Rotations Proving Costly?

Manager Enzo Maresca made five changes for this match as he continued his run of moving players in and out of the first team.

The rotations here followed after he made the identical amount for the loss to Leeds United and six for the draw with AFC Bournemouth prior to the trip to Bergamo.

The coach will view rotation as essential as he tries to manage players' minutes and challenge both at domestically and abroad, but he maintained the core group of players stays the unchanged for crucial fixtures.

"I believe tonight [in] the starting lineup we had eight or nine players who played against Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona, and Arsenal," he said.

"If you see the five alterations that we made compared to Bournemouth it is a change but it is the eight or nine players who played Barcelona.

"The players who took to the field tonight are the ones who feature in almost all the games."

Up Next for These Teams?

The Blues' next European fixture sees them welcome Pafos on the coming Wednesday (20:00 GMT).

The Italian team, meanwhile, are at home to Athletic Bilbao at the identical kick-off time.